Uncovered Passion Read online

  Her hands rose to gently touch her lips. They still seemed to tingle with awareness even after all the time that had passed since the kiss. She felt those curious sensations flow through her again causing the changes in her body that she was now correlating with arousal. On her bed, she slowly realized that Nessa was there, her eyes searching her face and her mind a swirling mixture of concern, fear, and exacerbation.

  Nessa sat down in front of her, her hands taking Sasha’s into her own “Honey, even if this young man turns out to be a tourist on holiday, this won’t end well for the two of you.”

  “I know,” Sasha hated the way they acted as if she was too dense to understand. She was well aware of the futility of it all. After all, her government still had her here in this prison of hers. “Nessa, I’m not stupid. He makes me feel alive and wonderful and other things I haven’t yet figured out.”

  Nessa gave her sad watery smile as images and thoughts of love found and horribly disillusioned crossed through her own mind. “I’ve been there myself Sasha. I know what you are going through but you have to face facts. If you let this go too far and he turns out to be a spy… how are you going to feel if it’s you who are responsible for his imprisonment here? Because that is exactly what will happen if he is a secret agent for the American government, and you know that.”

  Sasha couldn’t look Nessa in the eye. She wasn’t even in love with him and yet the thought of him being in a jail cell caused a pang of pain in her chest. That would be her duty to do just as it was his duty to deceive her. Her mind and heart were at odds and strangely enough she knew that she would somehow survive it. “I won’t lie to you Nessa. It would hurt to do that because it hurts now and I’m not exactly heads over heels in love with him. But, those are the risks we both knew coming into this thing.”

  Fishing out one of the stashed romance novels from her , “He makes me feel the things these girls feel and I don’t want it to stop. For once in my life I want to know what it is that everyone else has had the pleasure of discovering for themselves. I’m a big girl Nessa. Relax. I will complete my mission…broken heart or not.”

  Nessa stood up “I give up. You’re going to do what you want to do and…learn the hard, painful way.” Nessa placed a hand on her shoulder. “Promise me that you’ll talk to me if you find yourself getting in over your head. I don’t want anything to happen to you. Please remember that.”

  Watery eyes made it difficult for Sasha to look up and see Nessa, a woman she wished with all her heart had been her mother. “I will, I promise.”

  Nessa wrapped her arms around her causing a few tears to slip down Sasha’s cheek. “I’ll always be here for you and no matter what happens I’ll stand by you.”

  Sasha squeezed the older woman in a tight hug. “Thank you, Nessa.”

  Words couldn’t express how much she appreciated the other woman so Sasha contented herself with a hug. An hour later as Sasha lay in the dark within her bed, her life played through her mind making it difficult for her to get to sleep. Sasha couldn’t help but find her thought fitting since she was in the very room that she had spent so much of her life.

  It was hard to imagine that at one time this room had been so sparsely furnished and depressingly gray that it had looked like a room one might see in a bad horror film. But, that had changed when Nessa had come into her life. The older woman had made it a point to treat her not only as a little girl but as her own.

  Together they had transformed the room into one that any young girl would be proud to have. Later, as she had gotten older, Nessa had come in to help her redecorate time and time again as her tastes changed. In fact, the only opportunities of normalcy she had gotten had come from Nessa but those moments had been few and far between. With thoughts of her stunted childhood, she drifted to sleep.

  Chapter 5

  Sasha was once again subdued as they walked through the streets of Moscow. Two hours ago, she had met Garrick at his hotel’s lobby and together they had eaten breakfast at a nearby restaurant. While inside the eating establishment, he had regaled her with personal but humorous stories of his growing years. A part of him had hoped that she would open up and tell him some personal stories about herself. Sometime during the previous night he had realized that it was more than just lust that he was feeling for her. As foolish as it was to want to cram as much of relationship as he could with a woman he would leave in four days, Garrick couldn’t stop himself.

  Only, she had never reciprocated with her own personal anecdotes. Throughout the meal, Sasha had laughed and even asked a few questions but never once had she shared her own. Even though he had tried to hide his disappointment, he had a feeling that she must have sensed it. Or maybe he was just reading more into her silence than there really was.

  Glancing at her profile, he was mesmerized by the soft beauty of her features. He had to do something to get her to open up to him. Taking a hold of her hand while they walked, he was rewarded with a shy hesitant smile from her lips. Her gaze barely looked away and then she stopped. Following her gaze, he saw a zoo up ahead. Glancing back to her, his question went unasked as he noted the strange expression on her face.

  Sasha heard his questioning thought but wasn’t ready to answer it yet. The Moscow Zoo lay ahead and it was a perfect example of why she had been unable to share her own personal history with Garrick because she had none really. Her life had been spent in a scientific facility. Unless she wanted to share what she was with him then there was nothing to give, which made her even more depressed. She wanted so badly to experience romance and this only served to highlight why it was unlikely to ever happen. Normal people could give and take while she simply could not.

  Although, maybe she could share some small part of it. “My mother took me to this zoo on my eighth birthday.”

  Actually, it had been Nessa and she had videotaped the zoo. Coming into her room, the older woman had put the tape into a VCR and together they had watched all the animals while Nessa had shared popcorn and cotton candy that she had brought with her from the zoo. It had been one of many things that Nessa had done for her in an effort to make her feel like a normal little girl who wanted so badly to have a parent who loved her. And for some reason, she wanted to share as much of that with Garrick as she could.

  “Why don’t we go inside and you can tell me all about it?”

  “Okay.” Together they entered the large zoo via the wrought iron gates molded into lion heads. Once inside the gates, Garrick paid the ticket fee and linked arms with Sasha. She immediately went straight for the cotton candy being sold by a street vender. Handing one to Garrick she smiled as she took a small nibble and moaned in pleasure. “Believe it or not, when my mother took me here, it was the first time I’d ever had this stuff. She laughed at the way I woofed it all down. And then, she walked with me from exhibit to exhibit for hours.”

  Garrick walked with Sasha down the mulch covered pathway while they ate the candy. He listened to her tell her story and found himself falling in love with her just a little, as he heard her talk about her eighth birthday. She came alive once again as she talked about the monkeys and their antics. A red ball was being tossed from monkey to monkey with ease. Sasha thought it was funny and stood in front of the exhibit for a long time watching them.

  Garrick took this time to watch Sasha. She was lovely beyond simple words to describe. Lifting his hand, he couldn’t resist the lure of pushing the lock of hair behind her ear, his fingertips caressing her face as he did it. The electricity surged from her to him causing his cock to stir. It was crazy that something so simple could move him like this. Suddenly, Garrick got an idea. A devious one at that.

  Dragging her with him, he ignored her questioning look as he began to look for someplace private within this very public place, a feat easier said than done. Finally, he found a nook between a fence and the back of the reptile building. Unable to hold out any longer, he pulled her into his arms as his lips covered hers. Delving into her mouth, a groan escap
ed from him as he felt her tongue tentatively swirl around his. Her sweetness was a heady feeling driving him to caress her body. He knew that if they had been in his hotel room they would have gone further because his hands ached to touch her bare skin.

  He didn’t understand how he could simultaneously be satisfied by cupping her cloth covered breast in his hand while aching to feel it skin to skin. Continuing his exploration, he had an irrational thought that only a blind man could have truly appreciated reading the beauty of her form with just his tactile senses. Even through the fabric of her cotton skirt, the delicate curve of her ass felt so right that his fingers tightened in an effort to keep from pulling up her dress. He had to stop. This wasn’t the place for this madness.

  Sasha was lost to his touch and his taste. She wanted him to do all the things he thought about doing. As crazy as it was, were they in his hotel room she would have gladly given him her virginity. No, she ached to give it to him. Her body wept in a desire to feel him touch her without clothes. A sob broke from her lips as his wandering mouth nibbled, licked, and sucked spots on her neck and shoulder that she never knew could be so erotic and pleasurable. She ached and wanted him so badly to bare her breasts to his questing mouth and hands.

  It was just like the books she had read. She realized as a tear suddenly broke loose from her eye to slide down her cheek. Nothing good could come from this. More tears welled up and fell because she could see herself falling in love with him and yet it would be the height of all folly to let it happen. Otherwise, betraying the man she feared was her soul mate would not only be an unthinkable thing but an unpardonable offense against love.

  Garrick felt something wet hit his cheek as he attempted to devour her scent and her arousal. Glancing up at her face, he froze at the tears slipping down her cheeks. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to maul you… actually that’s not exactly true. I did want to but I would’ve never done that if you weren’t willing.”

  She wiped at her tears with the back of her hand. “No, that’s not it. I’m crying because you’re making be feel so… happy. I just don’t know how to feel.”

  That was a first for him. Pulling back, he decided that it would be best if he gave her more time to adjust to this, to him. He would be on a plane in five days time and the last thing he wanted to do was be responsible for breaking her heart. She was the kind of girl you brought home to mama. Only, he wasn’t the kind of guy to bring the future Mrs. home for mama’s approval. His choices had nixed that.

  Releasing her from his embrace, he led her back to where people meandered around looking at the various animals within the menagerie. Suddenly, a howl from both the past and present froze him in his tracks. Ahead of them Siberian wolves circled along the perimeter of their cage, their gaze intent on Garrick. It brought back an unpleasant memory that he kept suppressed from Sasha. Dragging Sasha along with him, he moved away from the exhibit and towards a different exhibit.

  Sasha was confused. Garrick’s thoughts were a distorted collage of mental imagery she couldn’t make sense of. Running in the woods, away or to something she didn’t know. Finally, he slowed down enough to give her a half smile. “Sorry, I’ve had a problem with wolves since I was a teenager.”

  “That’s okay, I understand.” And she really did. Who didn’t become uncomfortable around things that reminded them of nightmares? Perhaps the spy thing wasn’t a possibility with Garrick. Sasha didn’t think that spies would shy away from things that scared them. She couldn’t help but hope that was the case because a huge part of her wanted him to not be one. Then there might just be a possibility that she wouldn’t have to turn him in. They’d be able to have a real relationship. Although maybe she was being a little unrealistic there. He was an American, after all. He lived an entire ocean away.

  “Are those things hedgehogs?”

  Garrick’s question brought Sasha from her wandering thoughts back to the exhibit they had walked into and the small pointed nosed creatures. Glancing at the sign in Russian, Sasha read aloud to Garrick.

  “The sign says they are tenrecs and come from Madagascar. The Moscow Zoo received them in 2000. So they are just three years old. This other part of the sign says that they produced an offspring last summer. I have never seen a hedgehog so you must tell me, do they look like them?”

  “I’ve only seen a few on television specials, but my buddies and I played the video game when I was in the Marines.”

  “The video game? What kind of game is played with small animals?”

  Shocked to know Sasha had never heard of video games, Garrick decided to do something about the grave injustice. “The video game is animated. There are no real animals in it. What if tomorrow I find an arcade place where I can show you first hand? How does that sound? If you’re free that is.”

  Sasha smiled. Garrick was so thoughtful. He had been thinking he wanted her to experience everything. Some of that everything was quite steamy in nature but Sasha tried to block that part out lest she lose all focus. “Actually, I’d love that. Do you know where we could go?”

  “There were a stack of brochures in my hotel room for shopping experiences. I could always look there first. If not, there are phone books to use or I could just ask the concierge service.”

  Sasha had not thought about any of those things, but then again, she’d never stayed at a hotel. Not wanting to show her ignorance, Sasha refrained from asking about a concierge. She had no clue what that might be. Not delving too deeply into Garrick’s thoughts, she tried to skim just basic information. She knew he was going somewhere this afternoon before he met up with her tomorrow. She just hadn’t looked deep enough to find out where. She wasn’t ready for this to be over with. Too many experiences with Garrick were turning out to be firsts and Sasha was desperately tempted to complete that final ‘first’ before he had to leave Moscow.

  “Hey, why don’t we head back Sasha. You’re looking a bit sun burned. While you rest up, I’ll see what I can find out for our date tomorrow.” Garrick would rather spend the rest of the day with her but he had some business to attend to before he could take her out and have some fun.

  “Sure, what time would you like to meet tomorrow? What do you wear to play video games?”

  Watching the twinkle in her eye, Garrick amused himself with the thought of her dressing up to play video games. She really was sexy with all of her innocence. Strange how he had previously gone for women who were experienced in life but now found himself clearly enamored by one so unsullied.

  “You don’t wear anything. Well…” He would love to see her wearing nothing but he didn’t think she was the type of girl to go that far without a little more effort on the guy’s part. “What I meant is that you don’t dress up. Anything casual will work. An arcade isn’t anything special. Why don’t we head back and I’ll check out the information before we decide what time to meet tomorrow. Are you hungry? We could stop somewhere and grab lunch before you leave?”

  “Yeah, I am kind of hungry.”

  Chapter 6

  Sasha paused outside the hotel to stare at her reflection for the umpteenth time this evening and debated whether the outfit she was wearing was too provocative or not. The low cut halter top and curve hugging jeans had drawn more than a few sets of eyes to her body as she journeyed here from headquarters. Looks that she had appreciated but now realized that the lust filled stares had done nothing to spark her own like Garrick’s did. That once again had Sasha wondering if what she felt for Garrick was more than just simple lust. If it wasn’t, what was it?

  Well, she wasn’t likely to figure that out anytime too soon as she had only known him for three days now, which was why she was hoping that the outfit she was wearing would accomplish its mission. The tight low rise jeans and the tons of cleavage she was showing should keep Garrick’s mind on her and not anything she’d have to report to her superiors. It was wrong but she really needed to keep seeing Garrick, at least until she knew what it was that she was feeling for him. Even th
ough she knew it was foolish, Sasha had resolved herself to give it a couple more days because she needed this time to figure everything out. The problem was that she was risking a great deal to prolong this any longer than she had already done so.

  Entering the hotel by the grand front entrance, Sasha’s eyes swept the lobby looking for him. The floor was nearly packed with people either coming, going or waiting in the assorted chairs and couches situated on a red plush carpet. Large plants flanked each conversation area. That was when she saw him. Garrick’s eyes met hers from the plaid wing backed chair he sat in. His eyes devoured her body with a fierce intensity that she was becoming to love while his mind flashed with half a dozen fantasies of not only what he wanted to do to her but where he would like to be doing them at. A delicious throb and hum coursed through her nipples and ended deliciously between her thighs. Sasha bit back a small moan as she found herself thinking about his favorite fantasy. He wanted to see her play with herself in a wanton display meant solely for him. Why was she so tempted to give him his fantasy?

  Garrick really wanted to eat her up in the most salacious way. His jeans were pinching his favorite part and the urge to whip it out reminded him that he wanted to do a whole lot more than just eat her up. He could already picture in his mind’s eye how she would feel as he thrust into her over and over again. He could safely say that he had never had such an intense feeling about anyone before. “I just called a cab to meet us outside.” He called out in way of a greeting.

  A part of Garrick would rather try talking her into following him back upstairs but at the same time he wanted to see her face light up as he introduced her to new experiences. In which case, either option would work. “There is an arcade not too far away from here in a shopping center. We can eat first and then go to the arcade.”